Chicopee may swap paper for laptops

CHICOPEE - The Board of Aldermen is thinking of going green, at least when it comes to its paper use.

The board has asked the city's Management Information Systems Department to prepare a study on whether it is feasible for the board to forgo most of its paper use and use laptop computers instead. Ward 6 Alderman Timothy S. McLellan introduced the idea and it has been sent to the board's Finance Committee for consideration.

"It might be a good idea for us to switch over from paper to laptops to save money," McLellan said last week.

Ken F. Krech, director of the Management Information Systems Department, said he thinks McLellan's idea is a good one. He said the cost factor still has to be determined. Right now, the city spends about $3,000 a year on paper, according to Purchasing Director Brian G. Salamon. Krech said laptops cost anywhere from $300 to $6,000.

"What we want to do is bring the aldermen into the 21st century," Krech said this week. "I think it's a good step in the right direction."

Right now, a courier delivers the aldermen's meeting packet to each of the 13 alderman's houses. That packet can sometimes include 100 pages.

"We have a driver half the day on Friday delivering all the packets to us, never mind all the work our assistants do," McLellan said. "I want to start with our office and move forward if there is a costs savings."

At-large Alderman James K. Tillotson said he has mixed feelings about the proposal. He said it's important the board have hard copies of documents.

"We definitely go through too much paper, but I think we have to keep hard copies," Tillotson said. "We need something to make sure we have a back-up."

McLellan said laptops would be more efficient.

"As the legislative body we have to keep one hard copy of our meetings, not 13," McLellan said.

Some aldermen said they have some doubts about using laptops, but are willing to consider the proposal. Ward 1 Alderman Dino A. Brunetti said he sees both sides of the issue.

"It's a good idea to look at it and see what the cost is," Brunetti said. "It's probably time to look into this."